Ark at Temple Akiba
The Hebrew letter aleph in (Temple) Akiba is especially significant as it reflects Rabbi Akiba’s belief in the holiness of daily life. When a sofer (Torah scribe) pens the letter aleph, he or she writes a canted vav and then adds an upwards facing yud on one side, and a downwards facing yud on the other. This graphic structure of the letter aleph exemplifies the connection between heaven and earth.
The design of the Temple Akiba’s ark doors incorporates the letter aleph and mirrors it to create a pattern of hexagons, that recall the plan of the Sanctuary, and which frame The Golden Rule, “Love thy neighbor as thyself”. A staggered pattern of alephs and hexagons frame the letters and words of (excerpts from) three Jewish texts: Leviticus 19:18 (G-d’s commandment), Talmud Shabbat 31a (The account of Hillel reciting the Torah while standing on one leg, and Sifra Kedoshim 4:14 (Rabbi Akiba saying, “This is the greatest principle of the Torah.”)
The doors are inscribed through etching on the front and back glazed surfaces and printing, at a variety of scales and patterns, on a laminated film fused between the two layers of glass. The ark door pulls also reflect the symbolic structure of the letter aleph.
